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Hannah Weiner
Hannah Adelle Weiner (November 4, 1928 - 11 September 11, 1997) was an American poet, often grouped with the Language poets because of the prominent place she assumed in the poetics of that group. Life Youth and education Weiner was born Hannah Adelle Finegold in Providence, Rhode Island. She attended Classical High School, until 1946, and then Radcliffe College. She graduated with a B.A. in 1950, with a dissertation on Henry James. Career Working in publishing and then in Bloomingdale's department store, she was married and then divorced after 4 years. Weiner started writing poetry in 1963 although her earliest chapbook was published only in 1970. During the 1960s, Weiner also organised and participated in a number of happenings with other members of the New York art scene, where she had been living for some time. These included 'Hannah Weiner at Her Job', "a sort of open house hosted by her employer, A.H. Schreiber Co., Inc." and 'Fashion Show Poetry Event' with Eduardo Costa, John Perreault, Andy Warhol and others in a "collaborative and innovative enterprise that incorporated conceptual art, design, poetry and performance." In the early 1970s, Weiner began writing a series of journals that were partly the result of her experiments with automatic writing and partly a result of her schizophrenia. She influenced a number of the language poets and was included in the In the American Tree anthology of Language poetry (edited by Ron Silliman). Beginning with Little Books/Indians (1980) and Spoke (1984) Weiner's work engaged with Native American politics, particularly the American Indian Movement and the case of imprisoned activist Leonard Peltier. Writing Although Weiner started writing poetry in 1963, her earliest chapbook, The Magritte Poems (after Rene Magritte), was published only in 1970. It is not indicative of her latter work, being "basically a New York School attempt to write verse in response to the paintings of Rene Magritte". Interest in Weiner continues into the 21st century with the 2007 publication of Hannah Weiner’s Open House, "a representative selection spanning her decades of poetic output" Poetics Archives SUNY Buffalo, Feb 2007. This volume was edited by Patrick F. Durgin, who provides an overview of Weiner's art: :Hannah Weiner’s influence extends from the sixties New York avant-garde, where she was part of an unprecedented confluence of poets, performance and visual artists including Phillip Glass, Andy Warhol, Carolee Schneemann, John Perrault, David Antin, and Bernadette Mayer. Like fellow-traveler Jackson Mac Low, she became an important part of the Language poetry of the 70s and 80s, and her influence can be seen today in the so-called "New Narrative" work stemming from the San Francisco Bay Area. With other posthumous publications of late, her work is being discussed by scholars in feminist studies, poetics, and disability studies. But there does not yet exist a representative selection spanning her decades of poetic output. Hannah Weiner’s Open House aims to remedy this with previously uncollected (and mostly never-published) work, including performance texts, early New York School influenced lyric poems, odes and remembrances to / of Mac Low and Ted Berrigan, and later “clair-style” works. Publications Poetry *''The Magritte Poems''. Sacramento, CA: Poetry Newsletter, 1970. *''Sixteen''. Windsor, VT: Awede, 1973. *''Little Books / Indians. New York: Segue Foundation, 1980. *''Nijole's House. Needham, MA: Potes & Poets Press, 1981. *''Code Poems: from the international code of signals for the use of all nations''. Barrytown, NY: Open Book, 1982. *''Spoke''. Washington, DC: Sun & Moon, 1984. *''Written In: The zero one''. Vic: Post Neo, 1985. *''Weeks''. Madison, WI: Xexoxial Editions, 1990. *''The Fast''. New York: United Artists Books, 1992. *''Silent Teachers Remembered Sequel . Providence, RI: Tender Buttons, 1994. *''We Speak Silent ''. New York: Roof Books, 1996. *''Page. New York: Roof Books, 2002. *''I Saw the Land Bearing''. Buffalo, NY: Cuneiform, 2007. *''Hannah Weiner's Open House'' (edited by Patrick F. Durgin). Kenning Editions, 2007. Journals *''A Journal Entry''. Providence, RI: Deduction of the Innocents Pamphlets, 1975. *''Clairvoyant Journal, 1974: March-June retreat''. Lenox, MA: Angel Hair Books, 1978. Except where noted, bibliographical information courtesy WorldCat.Search results = au:Hannah Weiner, WorldCat, OCLC Online Computer Library Center Inc. Web, Apr. 18, 2015. See also *Language poets *List of U.S. poets References Fonds *Register of Hannah Weiner papers 1946-2002, University of California, Davis (UCSD *Hannah Weiner Writings circa 1973 to 1999, UCSD Notes External links ;Poems *Hannah Weiner @ EPC Electronic Poetry Center *Hannah Weiner 1928-1997 at the Poetry Foundation ;Books * * Little Books/Indians by Hannah Weiner ;Audio / video *Hannah Weiner at YouTube *Hannah Weiner at PennSound *[http://blip.tv/file/567598 Open House launch] video ;Books *Hannah Weiner at Amazon.com ;About *"Hannah Weiner" by Charles Bernstein *Hannah Weiner (1928-1997): An online tribute at EPC (Electronic Poetry Center) *"perhaps the most shocking revelation" Ron Silliman discusses Hannah Weiner’s Open House (2007) *Tom Donovan on Open House Category:1928 births Category:1997 deaths Category:American poets Category:American women writers Category:Women poets Category:Language poets Category:People with schizophrenia Category:Radcliffe College alumni Category:People from Providence, Rhode Island Category:20th-century poets Category:20th-century women writers Category:English-language poets Category:Modernist poets Category:Modernist women writers Category:Poets Category:Jewish poets